As the weather turns colder, the third wave of the COVID-19 pandemic has recently peaked in Japan, with no sign of letting up. Working from home every day and rarely going out was stifling, so I came to the airport to watch the airplanes and relax.

I love capturing planes pulling up nose-high from the front in this kind of backlit condition, Especially since this is a JAL special livery aircraft featuring “Nippon Festival”.

The Nippon Festival is a nationwide Japanese art and cultural event, aiming to attract a wide audience from both home and abroad through colorful projects such as exhibitions, stage art works, and art festivals.

The Nippon Festival is a cross-sectoral collaborative project led by the Agency for Cultural Affairs and the Japan Arts Council, with the participation of many public and private organizations. One of the festival’s goals is to attract international tourists to regions outside of Japan’s major cities during the period of the 2020 Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games and before and after. Including disaster-affected areas, it promotes the effective use of unique cultural resources of communities and regions across the country.

Unfortunately, due to the pandemic causing the Olympics to be postponed, the Nippon Festival’s activities have been greatly impacted. I only learned about the existence of this festival through this painted aircraft.

This is my first time seeing this Aero Asahi Cessna 680 Citation Sovereign business jet, registration number JA680C. <img src=https://imgproc.airliners.net/photos/airliners/1/0/0/6225001.jpg?v=v4e9d5aacb02>

Ground crew connecting ground power to the 787 aircraft

Potable water service replenishment

Do pilots wear masks even when flying?

Airport vehicle at dusk

Takeoff at dusk

Visitors at the observation deck

Coming to the airport to take photos relieves the stress of consecutive days of work, while hoping that the virus pandemic will leave us as soon as possible.